More on Beginnings and Endings

Only in the last tune of our 4 waltzes we’ve looked at did we really kind of bring it to an end. We played it colla voce first and then we used the 2 chord vamp to establish time. Then we played it in time - if we had a rhythm section we could play it with a rhythm section. Again, when we get to the end we can extend that vamp section for as long as we wish and then end on those 2 pause bars. So that’s something with a beginning and an end. Now the idea of playing something colla first and then picking up in time is quite a regular one for all sorts of tunes but, again, particularly in waltzes.

The very first tune we looked at “Someday My Prince Will Come”, we can play it colla first and then pick up into time.

Using that dominant pedal F, 3 crotchets to the bar to establish the time. We can make that last longer if we want to. What about when we get to the end? What’s a typical ending?

We could use the F pedal for a bit and then go down to, essentially, a B flat pedal where we play an Amen. We could actually do our standard vamp.

Just finishing there on B flat triad. Something like “All Blues” - it has such a canonical format - the original is so strong that it’s pretty hard to do anything else with it really. So you start of with

and then after a while add

so you could end like that as well. When you get to the ending

with a rallentando.

If you want to add something to it put in a sharpened eleventh.

That’s a kind of standard rallantando on that vamp. The other thing you could do is the drums could drop out after a while so that there’s only the piano and the bass player. Then the piano could drop out and the bass could be playing on its own.

However many times the bass player feels it was appropriate before it does a rallantando to finish. It’s also possible to do that last 4 bars 3 times. That is another option - but not many people do that - but you could. Finally “It’s A Raggy Waltz”. As it turns out I played this last week with my trio in an Oxford College and we played it pretty conventionally all the way through until we got to the last chorus. In the last chorus I did something different - slightly quirky - but the trio picked up on it and it sounded a bit like this.

Slightly jokey, but the idea was we played dotted crotchets in the middle

slowing down.

Then slowly playing the last A section and speeding up.

It’s slightly easier if you don’t have to play it in root position. More ideas on beginnings and endings in waltzes.